Lasting?...NO (Maybelline Ultra Lasting Nail Polish)

Member Name: PerfectlyPink

Product:	Maybelline Ultra Lasting Nail Polish
Date:	02/01/02 (149 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Range of colours

Disadvantages: Didn't do what it said!

It's Christmas morning at about 9:00am. I'm reaching the end of my stocking (Yes, I still have one!). There's a small package at the very end which I reach down for....oooooh what can it be?! I open it and it is...MAYBELLINE ULTRA LASTING NAIL VARNISH! It's a great colour actually, a gorgeous baby pink that's quite pearly too. If you're interested, it's number 78 and called Porcelain.


Next opportunity I get (I think it was a couple of days after Boxing Day) I try out my new nail polish. The colour was nice...not the baby pink colour it looks in the bottle. More white with a tiny tiny hint of pink. It went on quite smoothly but I got a few of those tiny bubbly bits you sometimes get with old nail varnishes when it dries up....know what I'm on about? - probably not! You need to apply a couple of coats of this or you won't get a very good colour.


The brush was quite fat and chunky and the nail polish didn't go streaky as I applied it. It smelled REALLY strong though! I think the cheaper the nail varnish you buy, the more putrid it smells! YUK! It didn't take ages and ages and ages to dry...though not as quick as some of the 60 second drying ones on the market though!


Anyway, the next question was WILL IT LAST? And the answer was quite simply NO. The nail varnish had totally dried and somehow (I don't know how but I was doing any nail bashing tasks like....I don't know...woodwork) the polish on my little finger got chipped! "Hey!", I thought, "That wasn't meant to happen!". And that wasn't the end of it...no...once it had chipped it peeled and the nail looked a total disgrace! I was VERY unhappy with my Ultra-Lasting-Super-Dupa-Nail-Varnish.


Let me give you the technical bit. On the front of my 12 ml bottle is says 'Lasts up to 7 days*'. Now, when you go and look for the * bit, in tiny writing on the back it states 'If u
sed with Top Coat'. Well, ALL my other nail varnishes last for ALOT longer than this Ultra Lasting stuff even without a stupid Top Coat! And to be totally honest with you all, this nail polish is a complete con!


Apparently, this Maybelline's Ultra Lasting contains and ingrediant called Dura Flex. Dura Flex is a chip and fade resistant formula that's supposed to 'bend with your nails so they don't chip' and your nails should not fade or peel. To be fair, my nails haven't faded....then again, they are painted nearly white! On the Maybelline site (www.maybelline.com) it says 'For best results, don't forget to use a base coat!'. So, if you really want it to last 7 days, you're going to have to invest in a base coat and a top coat. I'm sure some of you out there always bother with these...I don't. I just paint my nails straight off. And that is obviously why this Maybelline didn't work for me!


When it came to take the nail varnish off, it slid off quite easily with Sainbury's own nail polish remover. It didn't stain my nails at all (I wasn't expecting it to because it was such a pale colour). If you use a darker shade then to avoid staining your nails, it is advisable to use a base coat!


Maybellines prices are quite competative with other brands such as Rimmel or 17. A bottle of Ultra-Lasting costs £3.79. I usually use Estee Lauder nail polishes which are definatly worth paying a few extra pounds for! They last well and you get a really glossy finish too. My advice is not to bother with this Ultra Lasting malarky. It's not worth it. If you really want to though, there's 28 shades to choose from...heaps of choice!

Summary: